


Red Roses

by Lilacs_arent_dead



Category: Devilman (Anime & Manga)
Genre: A mix of manga and ova plotline i guess, Hanahaki Disease, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, normal devilman route
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-20 18:33:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17027832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilacs_arent_dead/pseuds/Lilacs_arent_dead
Summary: Ryo doesn't believe in love. These flowers blooming from his chest don't mean anything and the yearn to be around Akira doesn't testify to these irrelevant emotions. A splatter of roses if just how it is expected: a thorn in his side.





	Red Roses

Ryo Asuka hated flowers. They were useless, defenceless, and weak. The petals ripped with ease, and the pollen cause allergies. Powerless, fragile, inferior things. Ryo found no beauty in the frail. Perhaps the thing he hated most about flowers was how people loved them. There was nothing special or great about gifting colorful leaves to people you liked. They were an absolutely terrible gift, and he would scowl at them when stores stocked up near holidays. Maybe he just hated the idea of love. It was the reliance on someone else. It was as useless as flowers.

That was probably why he was surprised to get sick after reuniting with Akira Fudo, his childhood friend. His hoarse cough left the nurses concerned with letting him out of the hospital. After an x-ray one of them confronted him. “You have the starting seeds of hanahaki disease.”

“Are you sure?” Ryo was perplexed. Love was just concept that weighed and tethered others down. He couldn’t be in love. At least, who would it be? He hadn’t emotionally connected with anyone since his father died.

“There’s a small chance it could be something else. The evidence all points to hanahaki though. It hasn’t progressed enough for concern. I could schedule a consultant for the future if want?”

“No.” Ryo dismissed. It wasn’t anything.

“Okay.” The nurse nodded. “You can be released tomorrow. You want to keep off your leg though and not do anything extraneous with your side wound. Here’s your prescription medicine, you want to take two in the morning. We’ll monitor you and you’ll have to do the paperwork, but after that you’re free to go.”

When the nurse left, he limped to the wall phone. He didn’t have anyone to call to pick him tomorrow up except for the Makimura household. He fidgeted with the phone cord as he waited for someone to pick up.

“Hello?” _Fucking Miki_ he cursed his luck under his breath.

“Pass the phone to Akira.” He deadpanned.

“Is this Ryo Asuka?”

“No.” He was sweating now. He took a deep breath. Relax. “I’m one of Akira’s classmates.”

“None of his classmates talk to him. Ryo get off the phone.”

“Miki wait!” He shouted. ”Listen, I’m at the hospital and I need someone to drive me home tomorrow.” The phone went dead silent as it seemed like Miki was thinking over the proposal.

“Okay, but I’ll be tagging along.” No, this will not do.

“You aren’t allowed.” He hissed. “I thought you got the message last time.”

“Stabbing people and dragging my friend off to wherever you delinquents go to get high isn’t allowed.”

Ryo growled. “Okay. Fine then. I’ll be out around noon tomorrow. Don’t be late, hag.”

“Don’t be bitchy, pretty boy.” The beep of the hung up phone echoed in his ears. He put the phone back on the wall and sighed. If only Akira picked up the phone.

 

\-----------------------

 

Ryo woke up in cold sweat. Akira was in danger. Anxiety muddled his half awake brain and clawed at his chest. He had to go. The floor beneath him swayed as he got up to fumble through the box of his items. His clammy fingers unlocked the secret compartment under the false floor to release his homemade gun. The weight felt comforting. On the way out he slipped on his shoes and trench coat over the hospital bandages and clothes. His heart pounded as loud as his thundering footsteps on the tile. The cries of nurses telling him to stop were mere white noise as his ran. The pain in his leg was only a physical problem, as Ryo’s mind flickered 60 mph.

He stopped for a second when he slammed through the exit doors. The night air was cold and sent shivers through his body. How was he going to get anywhere without a car? His eyes scanned the parking lot before they settled on a convertible. Perfect. It wouldn’t be his first time stealing a car. He wasn’t prepared for how hard it would be to scale a car door with a broken leg. His whole leg throbbed, but it didn’t detour Ryo’s determination. His slick hands unscrewed the plastic cover of the steering wheel and hot wired with practiced motions. He smirked when the car let out a familiar purr. Alright. He still had no idea where to go. He closed his eyes. He was following his intuition thus far, he supposed, he’ll keep going wherever he feels.

He pushed the stick shift and whirled out of the parking lot at a faster than a safe rate. It only increased with urgency. The world passed by in a blur of muted night time colors. Ryo looked up the sky to see two demons fighting amongst the stars. The moonlight illuminated their mangled fur and feathers. His gut instincts told him one was Akira. His heart stopped when he realized that the road was narrowing as it morphed into rockier, mountain path. He hit the breaks and swerved so the convertible took up the road horizontally. Anyone going both ways would have to stop, or at least slow down to go around. Coincidentally, the light and rumble of a motorcycle hummed in the distance and came closer. Ryo’s heart raced in anticipation. The motorcycle came to a stop.

“What the fuck?” The man shouted gesturing to the car. He was only a medium build. Ryo could catch him off guard. Before the driver could roll his eyes and go around the obstacle, Ryo socked him in the face. It made a satisfying crack. He further shoved the man off his bike in his shock and jumped on. The engine reved under his shaking body, and he raced into the trees.

_Don’t worry Akira, I’m coming._

His found himself on top of a lookout. The view was over the forest and the open sky above. It was an ideal spot for sniping the bird demon. He let out another dry cough and aimed. Like expected, his shot hit and the demon released the one who was presumably Akira. The bird demon turned to catch his gaze with burning hatred. She detached her foot with a wicked smile and it went flying and hit Ryo dead in the chest. He gasped as all the air excited his lungs. The claw luckily didn’t make any new puncture wounds, but he’d be lucky if the stitches weren’t reopened. He struggled to free his body from where it was pinned between the tree and the claw. It was a fruitless effort.

 

\--------------

 

After a while, the claw left with no warning. Ryo face planted into the dirt. He propped himself on his elbows and spit with a snarl. His legs felt weak under his body as it adjusted to the weight. Plus the weight of his broken leg. He cursed under his breath and fell to his knees again. Reality seemed to hurt a lot more after his adrenaline high was gone. Ryo used the stolen motorcycle to help him get to his feet. He gingerly touched his abdomen with the painful realization he was going to have a huge bruise tomorrow.

With less of a rush, Ryo got back on the bike and started back down the hill. His intuition still dragged him half willing through the dark forest. There was a mini valley filled with green grass and flowers, where he noted Akira had laid to rest in his human form, on a pool of his blood. He limped over to Akira, keeping as much weight off his leg as possible. He gently brushed Akira’s dark hair out of his sticky face. He coughed again.

His arm was missing. Guess he had to find that. He stood up and wandered the forest a bit, using the trees as support and following overlapping trails of demon blood. It felt weird picking up a severed limb off the forest floor. The smell was wretched. He tucked it under his arm and ungracefully wobbled back to Akira. He set it in its corresponding place and watched in fascination. After a couple of minutes the severed limb attached itself. Flesh was molding itself back together and Ryo wondered how much needed to be severed before the demon would die. A shiver ran up his back with a sense of foreboding future. Sitting next to the unconscious Akira gave him an uncomfortable deja vu. Ryo felt the body next to him stir and he snapped out of his disassociation.

“Akira.” He couldn’t stop the relief from lacing his voice.

“I’m alive?” Akira croaked in daze. “What are you doing here?”

“I was at the hospital when I sensed you were in danger.” Ryo shrugged casually. “I think I developed psychic powers.”

“Gained powers, huh.” He gazed on, rolling the thought around in his mind like a smooth stone. “I thought you didn’t have a car. Are we really walking distance from the hospital?” Ryo chuckled maliciously. Akira groaned exasperatedly, “Not _again_. You’re going to go to jail.”

“Nope.” His lips twisted into a small smile.

Akira hugged his arms around himself to realize Ryo had put his oversized trench coat to cover his naked body. It smelled like smoke and alcohol. Very Ryo.

“C’mon Akira, let’s get out of here.” Ryo nodded his head to the motorcycle beyond the cusp of the valley. “Put your arm over my shoulder.” He soon regretted this invitation, as he continued to forget his similar wrecked composition. He gritted his teeth through the pain. When they got to their destination, Ryo instructed Akira to hold his waist tightly.

“I’m going to go fast.” He reasoned.

“I don’t doubt that.” Akira hummed, getting onto the vehicle.

The sun rose as the teenagers rode back into town. It casted a golden glow on the waking city below, and mirrored the newfound warmth Ryo felt when Akira laughed at his ridiculous driving. Ryo felt drunk on the ecstacy of breaking rules and feelings. Not the feeling of love, of course.

**Author's Note:**

> Doing this instead of finals haha. It's gonna escalate or whatever later.


End file.
